My Ex Is Evading Service. What Do I Do?

If your ex-partner is evading service, you are not the first person to experience this unfortunate and stressful situation. 

Oftentimes, when one person initiates a family law claim, the person who the claim is against will become aware of it, which results in their attempt to avoid being served in hopes of preventing this family law claim from moving forward. This typically only causes further issues for the plaintiff.

This situation can very quickly become a problem as in Supreme Court—and also in Provincial Court in many cases—you are required to serve a person personally with your claim. Serving someone personally quite literally means that someone other than you must hand that person a physical copy of the documents and confirm that this exchange happened. 

So what do you do if it has become impossible to track this person down? This is where a “substituted service” comes in handy: an order to serve somebody in a different format from personal service. This alternate serving format might be through email or any other form of electronic communication. 

As discussed, if you are unable to track down your ex to serve them your claim, there are alternative ways to reach them. And as a matter of fact, oftentimes the court will want you to serve a person in a number of diverse ways to ensure that it comes to their attention. 

So how do you obtain an order for substituted service?

You first must provide evidence of the attempts that you have previously made to try to serve that person personally, and afterwards, lawyers will typically utilize process servers to help individuals serve people personally. These process servers are extremely valuable as they provide an affidavit of attempted service. This is a sworn document that provides evidence about the attempts that have already been made to try to serve that person. It will also provide confirmation that previous contact has been unsuccessful, which will help provide support for your request for an order that you are allowed to serve the individual in some other way. 

Dealing with an ex who is evading service is a stressful situation that can leave you feeling defeated. Our team at CBM Lawyers has substantial experience in the field of family law and is here to take the weight off your shoulders. 

If you are interested in learning more about how to legally navigate an ex who is evading service, our team of proficient family law lawyers is here to help every step of the way. Contact us today.